CLOUD experiment shines new light on climate change

The CLOUD experiment reports a major advance towards solving a long-standing enigma in climate science: how do aerosols form in the atmosphere?

7 October, 2013

In a paper published today in the journal Nature, the CLOUD experiment at CERN reports a major advance towards solving a long-standing enigma in climate science: how do aerosols - tiny solid or liquid particles suspended in the air - form in the atmosphere, and which gases are responsible? This is a key question in understanding the climate, since aerosols cause a cooling effect by reflecting sunlight and by seeding cloud droplets.